Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | At my wit's end ... I need help please

Hi everyone. Before you read any further, this post is long and contains details about my situation that some people just might not want to know. But I am desperate for help so if you have the time and can read this and give me some feedback I would appreciate it from the bottom of my heart.

A brief history first � I am a 28 year old female who has been suffering from IBS since I was probably 10 or 11 years old. I would put myself in the IBS-D category. I am on medications for IBS. I take Dicetel for the IBS and Losec to help control the acidity in my stomach and therefore in the bowels. I am also on anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medications to help the IBS as well. I haven't really been following a diet for IBS per say. I know a few major triggers that get me (MSG, aspartame, some spices, and high amounts of fat) and try to stay away from them.

I have been under "decent" control for a while. I have the odd flare up and deal with it. But the last month has been a complete nightmare. It is not uncommon for me to have 3-4 BMs per day. Now there are days when I have in excess of 20. And here's the crazy thing � some are D, some are C, and some are "normal". But they switch from one BM to the next � in a matter of minutes or hours. There is just no rhyme or reason to the changes. It makes no difference what I eat at all. And speaking of eating � the past few days whenever I eat (and it makes no difference what it is), I am running to the bathroom within a matter of minutes. All of these BMs have lead to the dreaded "H" word � yup hemorrhoids. One actually burst last night and I was bleeding so much that I ended up in the ER.

I have been under a disgusting amount of stress lately which I know is directly related to this major IBS attack. And it leads to more stress because I have missed a lot of work. I am a nurse and it is not always possible to leave a patient in order to hot foot it to a bathroom. And the pain has been overwhelming. I am weak and tired all the time. My life seems to revolve around my bed and the couch and the toilet. I am afraid of losing my job. I love my job and being a nurse has been something I have worked so hard to become.

Does anyone have suggestions that I can try to get at least a little stability back into my life? Anything from foods to eat, methods to help the pain, or anything to feel like my life is mine again and not a prisoner of IBS. I am starting right at the beginning again.

Thank you for reading my post and for any suggestions you can give me

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Erin

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